I love shrooms! Their savoury flavour is called ‘Umami’, a Japanese term meaning flavoursome or delicious.
They are’t actually plants, so they have a different nutritional profile to that of fruit and vegetables.
Mushrooms have more protein per gram than most vegetables - and, what’s more, mushrooms contain good levels of Vitamins B3, B2, B3 & B5 and the minerals selenium, chromium & copper.
There are published research articles about the potential inhibitory effects of eating mushrooms on breast cancer, in particular oyster & reishi varieties, but this is dependant on quantity eaten and many other variable factors, so the benefits are unclear.
There is much discussion about the Vitamin D content of mushrooms. Mushrooms can convert their ergosterol to ergocalciferol (Vit D2) when exposed to sunlight. Generally mushroom growers only subject their mushrooms to light briefly while they are growing, harvesting & distributing, so commercial mushrooms do not contain measurable amounts of Vit D2. I find it fascinating that store bought mushrooms can be placed in midday sunlight for for 1-2 hours and as a result they can potentially generate 10 mcg of Vit D2 per 100g serve. 10 mcg of Vitamin D3 is the NHS daily recommended amount. This Vit D2 is converted in our bodies to D3 which is what we want. Interestingly, 80% of mushroom’s vit D is still approx. 80% retained after frying for 5 minutes and there is very little vit D loss when mushrooms are stored in the fridge.
I love cooking up some thickly sliced field (portobello) mushrooms with a dash of extra virgin olive oil. This recipe is from my 30-Day Programme, a Programme created by me to help encourage people to learn to eat whole foods in a very easy and delicious way!
There are published research articles about the potential inhibitory effects of eating mushrooms on breast cancer, in particular oyster & reishi varieties, but this is dependant on quantity eaten and many other variable factors, so the benefits are unclear.
There is much discussion about the Vitamin D content of mushrooms. Mushrooms can convert their ergosterol to ergocalciferol (Vit D2) when exposed to sunlight. Generally mushroom growers only subject their mushrooms to light briefly while they are growing, harvesting & distributing, so commercial mushrooms do not contain measurable amounts of Vit D2. I find it fascinating that store bought mushrooms can be placed in midday sunlight for for 1-2 hours and as a result they can potentially generate 10 mcg of Vit D2 per 100g serve. 10 mcg of Vitamin D3 is the NHS daily recommended amount. This Vit D2 is converted in our bodies to D3 which is what we want. Interestingly, 80% of mushroom’s vit D is still approx. 80% retained after frying for 5 minutes and there is very little vit D loss when mushrooms are stored in the fridge.
I love cooking up some thickly sliced field (portobello) mushrooms with a dash of extra virgin olive oil. This recipe is from my 30-Day Programme, a Programme created by me to help encourage people to learn to eat whole foods in a very easy and delicious way!